Develop Bugs

True cause of "signal" issues

Has anyone read this article? Very informative.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5254/investigating-the-galaxy-nexus-lte-signal-issue
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App

interesting read.
For a long time people have blamed their handsets for problems when the truth is there are always a lot of network issues out there at any given time.
Simply blaming your handset and assuming the network is 'great' because it has full bars or a good db is not the way to go.
Bars or db ultimately mean nothing, they do not mean you will get good speeds or in some cases to be able to make a call, in my experience its rare that the handset is to blame

True.
I had the RAZR before my phone. I would bet that the RAZR wasn't showing the correct signal strength and this is what a lot of people are comparing.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App

aye it would be interesting if someone ran some speed tests on the two devices side by side to what what the speeds v coverage were like

edit

jimdurt said:
They still have some issues to work on. My OG Droid gave me a better signal at my house on 3g. At least measuring the db strength. I dont have 4g here so the measurement in db strength should be sufficient to accurately see which phone has better reception.
Give Google time. They have the right hardware. Just need to get the software tweaked a bit more.
My wifes DroidX consistantly shows -93dBm with 3 bars of 3g service, while my GNex bounces a little more between -120dBm(most of the time) to -93dBm(rarely)
Even with no bars and @-120dBm, i get 600kbps download. Thankfully i have 18mbps download service through ATT Uverse wifi.
I do have to mention, my service improved ALOT from 4.0.1 to 4.0.2 update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At -120 on 3g your lucky to anysort of dl

My 3g/4g signal has never been better. This phone is twice as good as my incredible.
WiFi signal strength does seem to be a little less strong but nothing horrible. Now I wish they would figure out why the OS won't go to sleep.

Well, Verizon resolved all my Nexus, CDMA, and LTE issues for me in one fell swoop. They called me yesterday and told me that they couldn't provide me service at my house and recommended I switch to a different carrier.
I was with them for less than three days. Brought my Galaxy Nexus and wife's temp phone back to the store, then went to the Apple Store to get my wife an iPhone 4S on AT&T with the plan to stop at an AT&T store to get myself a Skyrocket. While standing there playing with the 4S waiting for a sales associate, I got the warm fuzzies from back when I used the iPhone and decided to get one for myself as well.
It was a fun year with Android, but looking back at how I spent yesterday debating if I was going to keep the GN with all its issues, I think I made the right call for me.
I also forgot how much better GSM is than CDMA. I have full bars in my office, whereas on Sprint and Verizon the phones were struggling to hold onto a 3G connection. Amazing difference.
Anyway, sorry to hijack the thread for a moment. I truly hope that this is an issue that can be fixed with software; it seems like poor reception has become a hallmark of Samsung phones and I haven't seen a software update yet that makes a notable difference. We'll see what Sammy and Verizon come up with.

i can understand the signal strength display not being accurate but explain this...
for one, the signal strength on this Nexus is always 1/2(or more) then what i had on my Thunderbolt or Rezound at any given time/place.... which apparently is explained above.
what isntvexplained is this... my Thunderbolt was able to download fast, but not nearly as fast as my Rezound. on the R, i was able to download 1GB in roughly 5 minutes. ive tried downloading the same file(s) from same location various times(test) on this Nexus and it always takes 30 - 40 minutes.
so if the signal strength isnt being reported accurately i can accept that.... but what about the significant difference in data speed?
i also want to note that on my Reound, whenever i played a track in Google Music it started up right away and could jump/skip forward in a track without delay...
now on this Nexus, theres always a delay before the track starts & when you jump/skip to. buffering b.s.

Your Rezound probably already had the music cached.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App

You guys also have to keep in mind that the LTE network slows down the more people that use it. When it was first intro a year ago, it was STUPID fast. Like 50mb DOWN. I remember my Droid Charge hitting low 40's in May. Now that there is a plethora of phones that have LTE and a lot of people using it, the network will be slowed. It still beats the hell out of any other network.

I’m glad somebody posted this.
I did a little experiment in my office this morning with three Verizon LTE phones:
1) Samsung Charge
2) HTC T-Bolt
3) Samsung Galaxy Nexus
With all three phones laying side by side, I opened up the same “Network Signal” app. All three phones we ranging in the -85 to -100 dB strength. There was no phone that clearly had a better or worse signal.
However, the Samsung Charge was showing 4 out of 5 “bars”, the T-bolt had 3 of 5 while the Nexus has a whopping 1 out of 5 bars. Amusing since they we all reading between -95 and -90 dB at that moment.
One thing I noticed different though, is that the Nexus requires at least -85dB before it will connect to LTE. Anything less, it switches to CDMA. I can’t speak for the T-bolt, but I could have sworn I saw the Charge at -95 / -100 dB and still reporting LTE Net. Type.
So, food for thought. Hopefully this “update” that Verizon is working on isn’t anything more than a recalibration of the “bars” indicator.
-Gp

Grannypotts said:
I’m glad somebody posted this.
I did a little experiment in my office this morning with three Verizon LTE phones:
1) Samsung Charge
2) HTC T-Bolt
3) Samsung Galaxy Nexus
With all three phones laying side by side, I opened up the same “Network Signal” app. All three phones we ranging in the -85 to -100 dB strength. There was no phone that clearly had a better or worse signal.
However, the Samsung Charge was showing 4 out of 5 “bars”, the T-bolt had 3 of 5 while the Nexus has a whopping 1 out of 5 bars. Amusing since they we all reading between -95 and -90 dB at that moment.
One thing I noticed different though, is that the Nexus requires at least -85dB before it will connect to LTE. Anything less, it switches to CDMA. I can’t speak for the T-bolt, but I could have sworn I saw the Charge at -95 / -100 dB and still reporting LTE Net. Type.
So, food for thought. Hopefully this “update” that Verizon is working on isn’t anything more than a recalibration of the “bars” indicator.
-Gp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There needs to be some kind of way to trick the OS into thinking it actually has the real signal so it will stop switching between 3G and 4G.

One thing I noticed different though, is that the Nexus requires at least -85dB before it will connect to LTE. Anything less, it switches to CDMA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have -86dB with 3 4G bars as I write this. I know that's not much of a difference from the -85dB, but I thought I would just mention it. Also, I've had -93dB with 4 4G bars (no picture of that though).

Syn Ack said:
There needs to be some kind of way to trick the OS into thinking it actually has the real signal so it will stop switching between 3G and 4G.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My 30,000 foot uneducated view is simply that the calibrations for the Nexus require a stronger signal to both acquire and then maintain an LTE data connection. These calibrations probably could be tweaked, but at what cost? I suppose (assuming my theory is correct) the decision came down to a flaky 4G or a solid 3G... and Verizon chose the stronger connection over the faster one. Do you blame them?
However, when I do get a solid 4G connection... the speeds are stupid fast.
On my lunch break today:
30.6M down
15.7 up

Galaxy Nexus Signal Strength

Anyone else get bad reception and weak radio from the Galaxy Nexus. I have the new radio i think (1515.09 V.FA02/ 1515.FA02).. the changing between 3g and 4g is still terrible and sometimes its hard for the signal to even come back in.
Do you know if this is the best radio? i think soon I will just get a Motorola device because they have better signal strength even in weak coverage areas. Not happy with the galaxy nexus for that reason. I think htc may even be better at that. samsung isn't good with their signal stength with phones.

The only time I get bad reception is in my house for some odd reason. It's so fraustrating because when I had my thunderbolt or bionic I got 4G in my house. Any where else I am good with 4G. I almost switched somebody phones but then I realized I might as well stick to the nexus.

kidnice15 said:
The only time I get bad reception is in my house for some odd reason. It's so fraustrating because when I had my thunderbolt or bionic I got 4G in my house. Any where else I am good with 4G. I almost switched somebody phones but then I realized I might as well stick to the nexus.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah.. just not willing to settle for a weak signal in a phone just because its a very nice phone. I pay for data and i want to have access to it completely.

I get 4G almost everywhere I go with the GNexus. Live about 25 minutes from Pittsburgh and can drive around pretty much everywhere and get good reception, at least on par with my Thunderbolt.

Significant problems as well, returning phone.
I have had the phone since 2/13. I'm in Rochester, NY and have had a significant number of dropped calls, times when the signal dropped, and extended re-connect times. I received a new SIM last night, which had no effect on the problem. I also tried the 4.0.4 update to the radios the OP has, with no significant improvement. VZW has said that a software update due in early march will alleviate the problem. I don't buy it. I've decided to return my phone within the 14 day "Worry-Free" period and go back to my OG Droid for the time being. I'm going to wait until the reports come back on this new "update", which is probably just 4.0.3. So i'm not feeling very confident.
-rs

I had the same problem...bad signal and wouldn't switch from 4g to 3g I returned mines and got another and now i'm very happy.the first one was a piece of junk but the second has been awesome..
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

stepinmyworld said:
Yeah.. just not willing to settle for a weak signal in a phone just because its a very nice phone. I pay for data and i want to have access to it completely.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me ask you a question , how did you get to the conclusion of bad reception or bad radio strength ? I had my razr side by side with gnex a few days ago. GNex shows one bar less than razr . I guess many folks will then consider throwing their gnex to nearest wall after seeing this. Guess what ? Then I ran speed test on both of them side by side at same time for 20 times to test speed (yeah I was bored that day) . Every single run I observed about 1mb/s to 3mb/s faster in gnex than razr. Even at the same time gnex showing one fewer signal bar.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

jiwengang said:
Let me ask you a question , how did you get to the conclusion of bad reception or bad radio strength ? I had my razr side by side with gnex a few days ago. GNex shows one bar less than razr . I guess many folks will then consider throwing their gnex to nearest wall after seeing this. Guess what ? Then I ran speed test on both of them side by side at same time for 20 times to test speed (yeah I was bored that day) . Every single run I observed about 1mb/s to 3mb/s faster in gnex than razr. Even at the same time gnex showing one fewer signal bar.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bars are irrelevant...

Having both the nexus and the rezound, I can definitely say the rezound has better 4g radio strength. With my rezound I get 2-3 bars 4g easy anywhere in my house. Gnex barely gets 1 and most of the time is on 3g. Very frustrating.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App

That's the problem. There are plenty of places I go that I lose 4G completely (on 4.0.4), while friends with the Razr or Rezound still have 2-3 bars of 4G and it's going strong.
I couldn't care less how many bars I have...I just care when I get dropped to 3G and other people don't.

My bionic held the 4G signal the best out of GN and Thunderbolt. But the browser on the GN is pretty darn fast that I hardly have any complaint when browsing on 3G. My GN holds that 3G with a death grip though. 4G is flaky at work and at home unfortunately...

Went thru 2 bad ones before I got one that worked properly.
If its giving issues, return it and try a replacement.
Seems Samsung's quality control is seriously lacking but they are a good phone when they work.

I think I get pretty good service on 3g. I don't have 4g in my area yet. I've had a droid x and iphone 4 and the nexus is best.

Radio comparison - Verizon GN vs Thunderbolt

Both phones set to CDMA EVDO only, no LTE radios active. Location is 3G EHRPD enabled, but does not have any 4G towers for miles. I held both phones the exact same way in the exact same location within 30 seconds of each other to record my results.
Signal Test:
Galaxy Nexus 3G Signal Strength: 0-1 bars, -120dbm 99 asu - -100dbm 1 asu
Thunderbolt 3G Signal Strength: 1-3 bars, -94dbm 2 asu - -85dbm 2 asu
Bandwidth Test:
Galaxy Nexus 3G Bandwidth: 0.86mbps down, 0.54mbps up
Thunderbolt 3G Bandwidth: 2.94mbps down, 0.56mbps up
Bandwidth test was the best of 3 runs using www.speakeasy.net/speedtest connecting to New York, NY. Current location is central NJ.
My Galaxy Nexus is running stock 4.0.4 with the newest radios and bootloader, along with Imo's kernel 2.4.1 exp2.
Honestly, after having my Thunderbolt for 8 months, coming to this supposed better phone and having these kind of radio problems is just appalling. The Thunderbolt was always railed for being the pioneer of LTE radios, and for getting weak signal. Well after these tests I am not sure what to believe besides the truth that is sitting in front of me. My brand spanking new Google phone has by far the worst radio I've ever seen in a Verizon smartphone.
I'm going to be hopeful in getting an update that may resolve these radio issues, but the realist in me tells me this is 100% hardware.
I'd like to get some results from other Verizon Galaxy Nexus users running 3G to see what kind of dbm and bar signal, as well as what kind of bandwidth you guys are getting. I am very disappointed and want to know if it's a hardware defect or if this phones radios' really are this bad

Meh. The Qualcomm radios in both of these phones are in fact ****. I think the build of the Galaxy Nexus (whether it be physical or software) has something to do with it. Maybe Samsung herp derped the position of the radios or Google took a **** on the blobs.
Regardless, its a great phone and still gets better data speeds than every other carrier and phone. -coughs- iPhone users -coughs-
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA

Except it doesn't get the best data speeds of any other phones, as my test results conclude.
Even on 4G I've nabbed 40mbps down 15mbps up bandwidth tests on that same exact Thunderbolt when I was in a good signal 4G area. How much have most GN users hit on 4G? 30mbps down?
This phone is a great micro-tablet, but as a phone it is heavily lacking.

DaRkL3AD3R said:
Except it doesn't get the best data speeds of any other phones, as my test results conclude.
Even on 4G I've nabbed 40mbps down 15mbps up bandwidth tests on that same exact Thunderbolt when I was in a good signal 4G area. How much have most GN users hit on 4G? 30mbps down?
This phone is a great micro-tablet, but as a phone it is heavily lacking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really, cause I have seen people getting upwards of 50mb/s on the Nexus (seems like most of them live in NYC).
Not to mention I was talking about people on other carriers.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA

Other carriers is a given, but that really isn't what the point of this comparison is. The point is I'm holding two phones on the same carrier, at the same time, the same way, and one performs multitudes greater performance than the other. Has nothing to do with other carriers.
Fact is this phones radio is junk. You can have a quad core 1080p Super AMOLED Plus screen and 2GB of RAM, the best GPU on the market and 128GB of space, but if it can't hold a signal to save YOUR life, then what good is it at as a phone?
Samsung/Google needs to get on this right now and fix this phones radio. I'm just worried that it can't be fixed through a software OTA...
And I'd also like some speed comparisons, namely 3G, from other Verizon GN users if possible please.

On 3g i used to get about -75 at worst with thunderbolt at my house. Currently getting -93 at best with two different galaxy nexus. Usually worse. Used to have a stable 4g signal too. Now it drops after a few seconds

johnprevite said:
On 3g i used to get about -75 at worst with thunderbolt at my house. Currently getting -93 at best with two different galaxy nexus. Usually
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sounds about right... very disappointed in these radios.

I get the same -120dbm, 99asu with my Nexus at home, where I would get around 95dbm on my old Tbolt. I think the antenna/radio gives up signal quicker at the fringe distances faster on the Nexus - if I go into a city I get the signal strength I am supposed to get. I have a theory that part of the problem may lie with Verizon's use of old Alltel towers (I'm on the VA/NC border) - The signal in my area is consistently weak, but I've gone to other rural areas & gotten good strength. Perhaps Samsung/VZW will give us a software update on the phones...and perhaps when they upgrade our towers around here for LTE it might straighten up the tower's overall firmware...But we probably wont get LTE here until 2020.

strongergravity said:
I get the same -120dbm, 99asu with my Nexus at home, where I would get around 95dbm on my old Tbolt. I think the antenna/radio gives up signal quicker at the fringe distances faster on the Nexus - if I go into a city I get the signal strength I am supposed to get. I have a theory that part of the problem may lie with Verizon's use of old Alltel towers (I'm on the VA/NC border) - The signal in my area is consistently weak, but I've gone to other rural areas & gotten good strength. Perhaps Samsung/VZW will give us a software update on the phones...and perhaps when they upgrade our towers around here for LTE it might straighten up the tower's overall firmware...But we probably wont get LTE here until 2020.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LTE will cover Verizon's current 3G footprint by the end of 2013, FYI.

Here's hoping!
Sent from my A500 using xda premium

GSIII LTE/Sprint

That's right I am on Sprint with no LTE, and I have a Photon. I plan on picking up a GSIII Sunday in a Sprint store. This may sound crazy to some of you, but for me it makes perfect sense. I don't get Wimax inside my home, but can get it outside sometimes here in the Bronx, NYC. I tried and liked the weight feel, and fluidity of the EVO 4G LTE. After researching it seems like the SGIII may be the phone to get based on over all performance and software enhancements. I have also experienced 1.5 mbs up and down on 3G in this area, and feel we will have LTE soon.
After using the EVO LTE "I am compelled to ditch" my trusty Photon for a GSIII. I do this for the software fluidity, and multimedia enhancements as well. I use my phone mostly for calling and rarely use Wimax unless I am out in the city any way. When NYC is lit up with LTE I will have unlimited data, and a great phone until this happens. If I want a better phone at the years end I will sell this for only a Galaxy Nexus and add to a second line! My last Premier upgrade is July 1, 2012.
When I factor in the fact that S4GRU reports that NYC will be lit up by October, and my upgrade is due now I decided not to wait and push my 2014 upgrade back until October. Also the fact that Sprint's service suffices enough for me to stay for the unlimited data, and LTE at an affordable rate. a win win scenario "for me"! I know that Sprint has already broadcast that they will light up the LTE in the 4-5 1st round major markets July 15th 2012.

I had phone phone (evo lte and GS3) Evo lte even tho is only a month old got a lot development going for it already, GS3 none really but no one almost has it yet, on performance I see both phones as fast, but the multitasking is so much better on GS3, is more like the galaxy nexus, it keeps apps in background for the longest and the screen is better on the evo lte, speaker is louder on gs3 but for some reason clarity goes to the evo lte, on network part I do not have any idea because I switch carriers because slow speeds my GS3 is on tmobile and even tho I like the phone now, I always wanted my Evo lte on tmobile cause it is a great phone... Anyways both phones are amazing but I would get the GS3 just to make sure you future proof with hose 2gb of ram
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2

jgalan14 said:
I had phone phone (evo lte and GS3) Evo lte even tho is only a month old got a lot development going for it already, GS3 none really but no one almost has it yet, on performance I see both phones as fast, but the multitasking is so much better on GS3, is more like the galaxy nexus, it keeps apps in background for the longest and the screen is better on the evo lte, speaker is louder on gs3 but for some reason clarity goes to the evo lte, on network part I do not have any idea because I switch carriers because slow speeds my GS3 is on tmobile and even tho I like the phone now, I always wanted my Evo lte on tmobile cause it is a great phone... Anyways both phones are amazing but I would get the GS3 just to make sure you future proof with hose 2gb of ram
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to hear this....thanks man

I went to the Sprint store 10:00 am Sunday morning to get my unit. The antenna on this phone is pretty darn good. It isn't too far removed from the Photo that I have. I compare signal -dbm strength and they are literally within -2 dbms and most times the very same -dbm and signal strength in poor reception areas.
After it discharged the 1st hour because of app down loads and updates from my SD card it went 10.5 hours under mild use 15% talk 35% screen time, listening to music. The phone looks way better in person and feels nice to hold. It is a bit slippery though.
I was leary of Samsung's phone after othe r issues kept flaring up in the GNEX, and SGII CDMA phones in the US. The GPS seems to lock on effortlessly, and the antenna signal is excellent for me so far. In my home signal from sprint is weak down stairs on the lower level and it received the same -dbm and bar strength as my Photon.
Phone calls are clear, and most importantly my Blue tooth's/Blue Ant T1/Q2 doesn't keep seem to disconnect sporadically as it did before.
Don't be afraid to get this phone.....This or the EVO LTE are both great phones and it's user choice in my opinion. So far I am happy that I bought this product!
I was also able to achieve 1.92 mbs down, and 1096 kbps upload on 3G here in the Bronx NYC near the Throggsneck Bridge! Network vision is a coming LTE I am waiting ok! I feel confident I will be basking in LTE signal very soon. S4RGU reports NYC market should be live by October.
If I can get 1.92mbs down all the time until then I'd be a happy camper for now!

QWIKSTRIKE said:
I went to the Sprint store 10:00 am Sunday morning to get my unit. The antenna on this phone is pretty darn good. It isn't too far removed from the Photo that I have. I compare signal -dbm strength and they are literally within -2 dbms and most times the very same -dbm and signal strength in poor reception areas.
After it discharged the 1st hour because of app down loads and updates from my SD card it went 10.5 hours under mild use 15% talk 35% screen time, listening to music. The phone looks way better in person and feels nice to hold. It is a bit slippery though.
I was leary of Samsung's phone after othe r issues kept flaring up in the GNEX, and SGII CDMA phones in the US. The GPS seems to lock on effortlessly, and the antenna signal is excellent for me so far. In my home signal from sprint is weak down stairs on the lower level and it received the same -dbm and bar strength as my Photon.
Phone calls are clear, and most importantly my Blue tooth's/Blue Ant T1/Q2 doesn't keep seem to disconnect sporadically as it did before.
Don't be afraid to get this phone.....This or the EVO LTE are both great phones and it's user choice in my opinion. So far I am happy that I bought this product!
I was also able to achieve 1.92 mbs down, and 1096 kbps upload on 3G here in the Bronx NYC near the Throggsneck Bridge! Network vision is a coming LTE I am waiting ok! I feel confident I will be basking in LTE signal very soon. S4RGU reports NYC market should be live by October.
If I can get 1.92mbs down all the time until then I'd be a happy camper for now!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to hear this, I'm also in the Bronx but I get horrible speeds in my house using the EVO lte, not too bad outside. I'm waiting on the store to open so I can make the switch to the GS3
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app

Iphony89 said:
Glad to hear this, I'm also in the Bronx but I get horrible speeds in my house using the EVO lte, not too bad outside. I'm waiting on the store to open so I can make the switch to the GS3
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You must switch from Tmobile Avatar to Sprint.lol I posted this information for people like your self in NYC, and also for people that want to know about antenna signal. I am very pleased about antenna RF reception, and GPS signal. I am only wishing that I could have got it for 149.00 from radio shack. They didn't know when they would get it, and I figured with Apple trying to ban every thing I better get one before supplies die out!

Super slow 4g speed with full signal strength

Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2

erliban said:
Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Each tower is different, also on TMo, it will say 4g, when it is on 3g.
Sent from my HTC Sensation using Tapatalk 2

erliban said:
Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have found that no matter if I get 1 bar or 4 bars that my upload and download are pretty much the same..? I get about 5mbps down in an HSPA+ area but our area is not the best...

erliban said:
Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
check out Settings->About Device->Status->Mobile network type
I'm in a "4G" area but I almost always see UMTS:3 there. I get 3-5 Mbps. Sometimes I see hspda:15, and I have seen 17Mbps.
My guess is you're on UMTS.

I'm sure it's all area driven. I'm considering switching to TMobile with this Note because the savings are incredible, but the coverage and speed compared to Verizon are absurd no matter where I go. Very disappointing.

guthrien said:
I'm sure it's all area driven. I'm considering switching to TMobile with this Note because the savings are incredible, but the coverage and speed compared to Verizon are absurd no matter where I go. Very disappointing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends where you live. I live in metropolitan CA and WA, so... 25mbps over 4G for me
You get what you pay for. In any case, you can always go pre-paid or month to month, just no subsidies.

erliban said:
Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been in similar situations before. I get 4g full bar but less than 300kpbs near a local shopping plaza. Less than 1/8 mile away I get 12mbps speeds. Go figure. I was testing out on both my Galaxy S2 and Galaxy S3 same time so it is definitely not a phone problem.

I hate to say it, but this phone's speeds just aren't acceptable to me after using LTE. Sounds like a whiny sort of complaint, but spending this much on a superphone..I did about a billion speedtests around eastern MI and it was rare to catch a good 4G signal like they demoed in the store. They also seem to have issues with their signal penetrating buildings. I love the phone, and would love to get away from Verizon and maybe use the new Nexus device too but they aren't there yet for me.

MattZTexasu said:
check out Settings->About Device->Status->Mobile network type
I'm in a "4G" area but I almost always see UMTS:3 there. I get 3-5 Mbps. Sometimes I see hspda:15, and I have seen 17Mbps.
My guess is you're on UMTS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In Charlotte nc I regularly get 18-20 down
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2

guthrien said:
I hate to say it, but this phone's speeds just aren't acceptable to me after using LTE. Sounds like a whiny sort of complaint, but spending this much on a superphone..I did about a billion speedtests around eastern MI and it was rare to catch a good 4G signal like they demoed in the store. They also seem to have issues with their signal penetrating buildings. I love the phone, and would love to get away from Verizon and maybe use the new Nexus device too but they aren't there yet for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a fine "4G" signal in Western Michigan but I never get over 6mbps down and 2mbps up with pretty terrible pings.... Decent coverage though...

shojus said:
I have a fine "4G" signal in Western Michigan but I never get over 6mbps down and 2mbps up with pretty terrible pings.... Decent coverage though...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd think here it would be at least as stable. But even at best I got 7 down. For comparison in a old wood frame house downstairs I'd get 22 on Verizon where the Note pulls 2g. Maddening as the more I see what they do with their phones the less I want to stay with them.

guthrien said:
I'd think here it would be at least as stable. But even at best I got 7 down. For comparison in a old wood frame house downstairs I'd get 22 on Verizon where the Note pulls 2g. Maddening as the more I see what they do with their phones the less I want to stay with them.
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I hear ya! I get 50mbps down and 15-20mbps up on my Verizon S3 in a brick building.... I live right by the tower though... I have no problem with 5mbps down as long as it is consistent but it usually is not...

erliban said:
Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
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A soft reset fixed my similar problem. With the phone on, take battery out and sim and then replace sim and battery back into phone. Worked for me..!
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda premium

Last night was averaging 29mbps and highest was 31.59mbps in the burbs of Chicago. Yet when I am in Downtown Chicago which supposedly has 42mbps, I only get 5-8mbps.

I travel all over the east coast for work, and know T-Mobiles network inside and out. I travel to small cities as much as big cities, so being able to connect to a network is important. If I were new to T-Mobile, and the Note 2 was my first phone, I'd think T-mobiles network sucked. I have 2 lines, a Sensation I use to mainly to tether with (10gb plan), and my main line the Galaxy Note 2 (unlimited 4g plan). I keep getting a message saying, "not connected to network" in areas where I should definitely be on the edge network, or roaming. The Sensation will be connected on a network when the Note will give the not connected message. My overall speeds in 4g areas are better with the Note than the Sensation, but not in secluded areas.
When the Sensation first came out, it wasn't connecting to T-Mobiles network correctly, then they sent out an update that fixed the problems. My first couple of weeks with the Sensation were hell because of that. Now I'm dealing with it again with the Note 2. I'm hoping that they fixed the data issues in the first ota update, which I hope happens soon.
Here are some speeds I've gotten in the past few days...
Dothan Al - 2.03 mbps
Jacksonville FL suburbs - 17.69
Harrisburg PA - 5.45
Chattanooga TN - 2.31
us231 on FL/AL border - .88
Atlanta 14.81
Jacksonville and Charlotte has better speeds than Philly. I've yet to find a place with over 20mbps

erliban said:
Just got my tmobile note 2. I have at least tested at 2 different locations where I see full 4 bars of 4g signal and my download speed is less than 500k!
Anyone saw similar issue?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
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sounds like ur on a $50 dollar or cheaper prepaid plan. those only come with edge support (even tho it will say 4g). upgrade to a 60 or 70

Las Vegas/Henderson NV area has great speeds. My highest was over 28Mbps and average is between 18-20.

guthrien said:
I'm sure it's all area driven. I'm considering switching to TMobile with this Note because the savings are incredible, but the coverage and speed compared to Verizon are absurd no matter where I go. Very disappointing.
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Yeah i live in fort meyer and my coverage is pretty damn good...

My area is rated good to excellent according to T-Mobile, but that obviously is subjective. The step back from LTE just isn't doable for me on a premium device. I'm glad I learned that while i had time to back out. I understand better what a huge sacrifice of tech it is on the Nexus phone now. But I envy those it doesn't impact obviously.

It could always be worse op. I'm currently with sprint but will be switching to tmo in a little while so I've been lurking the forums. I have the nexus, a 4g lte phone and I pay for unlimited data, yet I only average 200kbps on 3g, and Saint Louis will be lucky to see sprint lte by the end of 2013.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium